Those were the words more than 120 MESA leaders first heard as they began the 2018 Leadership Forum in Atlanta. The annual convening brought together members of the ILT, MESA Board of Directors, MESA office staff and school leaders for an enriching day-long conference.

Sr. Patricia Talone, RSM, an ethicist formerly of the Catholic Health Association, led forum-goers through a session on ethical decision-making. She noted it’s so easy today to “be swimming in knowledge but lack understanding.” Known by many as a quintessential educator, Sr. Pat ran through several case studies presenting difficult, complex cases in which Mercy educators would have to make decisions, balancing the dignity of the individual involved with the good of the whole school community. Examples included teachers with protected disabilities but poor job performance, out-of-wedlock childbirth, and firearms in schools.

Sr. Pat next offered a series of steps Mercy education leaders could take to tackle such sensitive cases. These steps include:

Doing your homework

Determining relevant stakeholders – “Listen to the people with the coal face,” Sr. Pat said, meaning talking to the people who are on the front lines and actively engaged in the work.

Gathering information

Identifying the benefits and burdens of any particular course of action – “There will always be unintended consequences,” she warned.

She also noted that our own individual values and perceptions come into play so we must always pray for guidance throughout the entire process. She also offered wisdom during a question and answer period following her presentation, on dealing with distractions such as social media and how to make time for dealing with tough cases. The MESA Board also announced the formation of a new ethics committee that will support decision-making in schools where appropriate.

In the next session, the newly approved MESA mission statement was unveiled. Approved by the Board and Institute Leadership Team late last month, it reads:

The Mercy Education System of the Americas (MESA) is rooted in the Gospel, through the Catholic faith and the Mercy charism. Inspired by Catherine McAuley, MESA nurtures highly competent and deeply compassionate leaders ready to serve a vulnerable world.

ILT President Sr. Patricia McDermott, RSM, next led forum attendees in a discussion on the importance of embedding and strengthening our Catholic identity, heritage and traditions, along with our Critical Concerns, within our schools. The day closed out with a session moderated by MESA Executive Director Sr. Lisa Griffith, RSM, in which school leaders dialogued, asked questions and exchanged information. The discussion centered around identifying consultants, funding matters, immigration policy concerns, strategic planning and more fully engaging alumni.

The following day, Mercy education leaders from Central and South America, the Caribbean, Guam and the Philippines got together for a relaxed discussion on a range of topics. For example, they reacted to the Parkland school shooting and talked about how guns from the United States travel to other countries (where there are no gun manufacturers) leading to increase in violence. They also discussed their varying structures and relationships with local ordinary, the declining number of Sisters in schools and carrying on the Mercy tradition after their retirement.